Applications invited for FoRCE is a pantropical experiment Fellowship

Organization: FoRCE

Apply By: 31 May 2019

FoRCE is a pantropical experiment, with permanent field plots in Tanzania and Australia. We aim to measure and understand long-term tropical forest dynamics and interactions with climate, human disturbance and experimental management. We are using a combination of permanent sampling plots, hemispherical photographs, experimental vine removal and remote sensing.

Seeking collaborators

Our new forest experiment is inviting researchers to use our permanent sample plot infrastructure to test their own hypotheses – and in turn help us to build a bigger picture of the drivers of forest succession and management success.

What?

FoRCE is a pantropical experiment, aiming to measure and understand the long-term dynamics of tropical forest recovery from major human disturbance, and interactions with climate, topography and experimental management. We are using a combination of permanent sampling plots, hemispherical photographs, experimental vine removal, seed germination, tree planting and remote sensing.

Why?

We are doing the research to understand (a) fundamental information about biomass and species community changes during forest succession, and (b) how tree planting and management of vines and other weeds affects these changes and promotes more rapid recovery from severe degradation by logging or cyclones.

How?

We are driven by two fundamental questions: (A) How do forest structure, forest functioning and associated species communities change during forest succession, (B) How can tree planting and management of forests for vines and weeds promote rapid forest recovery following disturbance (including severe degradation from logging or cyclones).

Data & Infrastructure

We are measuring tree, liana, palm and strangler density, growth and structure in 0.04ha (sapling) and 0.4ha (large stem) sample plots with measured and marked stems, stratified across climate and disturbance gradients. We are upscaling these data to the landscape scale using satellite sensor data. We are establishing climate and soil monitoring stations in some plots and for others we have remotely sensed climate data.